DanceLife Teacher Conference Faculty

Altuve, Kristian

Kristian Altuve and his team are reinventing how Dance Studios can grow with more ease and less headaches. When Kristian is not at the desk – as co-founder of Dance Motion Marketing he’s always at his desk – you’ll find him trail running through the LA mountains. He’s always up for a good laugh and…

Barnes, Lyndzi

Lyndzi Barnes, a native of Colorado Springs, is a seasoned entrepreneur who began her career at just 19 years old. She has endured the highs and lows of small business, turning her struggling enterprise into a thriving 7-figure business. Despite her success, Lyndzi remains deeply connected to the challenges faced by entrepreneurs and understands the…

Bettencourt, Gregory

Gregory Bettencourt is the Executive Director of the Rhee Gold Company and has worked for Rhee and his various interests for over 8 years. Greg has brought his knowledge in business and personnel management to Rhee Gold’s DanceLife and assists in the leadership of I.D.E.A., helping studio owners grow both personally and professionally. Greg is…

Brettingham-Filice, Rebecca

Rebecca Brettingham-Filice is a visionary entrepreneur and dedicated dance professional, making significant contributions to the dance community. Since the inception of Dance Extreme in 1997. she has played a pivotal role in shaping the dance experiences of over 26,000 individuals who have passed through the studio’s doors. Rebecca’s influence extends beyond her own ventures, as…

Canino, Jessica

Jessica Canino is the owner and artistic director of Creative Dance Studio in Plantation, FL. After receiving her MBA in Entrepreneurship in 2014 she opened the doors to her studio where she currently manages the business, teaches students of all ages in a variety of dance styles, produces two productions a year, and runs the…

Canterna-Hardy, Ashley

Ashley Canterna Hardy received her ballet training at the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, DC on full scholarship. At 14, she was the winner of the junior division at the Youth America Grand Prix Ballet Competition. That same year, she represented the United States at the 2000 International Ballet Competition in Varna, Bulgaria winning…

Conlan, Bryce

Bryce Conlan is a co-founder at Dance Motion Marketing and serial entrepreneur with a passion for helping leaders grow. His favorite thing is getting fired because a dance studio client is full and can’t take any more students… which happens more often than you’d think. In his spare time, Bryce enjoys a good whiskey, ice…

Deiss, Kristin

Kristin Deiss and Michelle Loucadoux have a shared sixty years in the dance industry. Both have worked extensively as professional dancers and are well-versed and experienced in the realm of dance education. After working together in the education field for seven years, the idea of Danscend was born because of an overwhelming need that Deiss…

Dever, Sean

Sean Dever is a CPA and financial planner based on Massachusetts. He provides tax planning & preparation, accounting, payroll, consulting, business valuation and financial services to Dance, Swim, Gymnastics and other child sport centers throughout the United States. His specific areas of expertise include taxes, payroll, bookkeeping, financial planning, tax planning and business valuations for…

Duncan, Sandi

Sandi Duncan is a dance educator, choreographer, mentor and personal development coach with a career spanning over 40 years in the New England area. She owned, directed and taught at Dance Productions in Woburn, Massachusetts for 9 years, before becoming a senior faculty member at the Melissa Hoffman Dance Center in Hudson, New Hampshire. Throughout…

Foley, Brian & Faye

A Toronto native, Brian Foley made his professional debut at the tender age of ten, and has worked and trained with many great choreographer/directors including Jerome Robbins, Michael Bennett and Bob Fosse. At age nineteen, he choreographed his first television series and has gone on to rack up an impressive list of credits. Among them,…

Gold, Rhee

Rhee Gold is a dance field pioneer who has led a movement that continues to change and improve the face of dance education. Teachers and studio owners from the United States, Australia, Canada, Grand Cayman, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Philippines, Singapore, United Kingdom and more flock to his retreats, seminars, keynote speeches, and conferences to gain fresh…

Gray, Kaelyn

Kaelyn Gray has been a teacher for over 20 years, both at her home school near Cincinnati, OH, and traveling all across the United States and Canada as a a guest artist and instructor. Focusing on all styles of dance, she is a sought-after teacher and adjudicator who loves to bring her unique teaching style…

Griffin, Billy

Billy Griffin is a New York City based choreographer and educator. Select choreography credits include the National Tour of Friends! The Musical Parody, as well as work for the Hudson Valley Dance Festival featuring So You Think You Can Dance winner Ricky Ubeda, The Red Bucket Follies for BC/EFA, The Drama League Gala (honoring Steve Martin), Hershey Park,…

Gudat, Diane

Diane Gudat is a freelance writer, teacher, coach and choreographer from Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. She now teaches at the studio she owned, for more than 28 years and has been a dance educator for more than 50 years. She is the author of seven dance books specifically designed for the dance teacher: The Time Step…

Haithcox, Ginger

Ginger Haithcox, a natural born leader, has a long history of working with youth serving organizations throughout her career with more than 20 years of experience as a Dance Teacher and Studio Director, Youth Minister, Camp Director, Training Specialist, Manager of Product Sales, and Director of Marketing. She completed her BA in Religion and Cultural…

Hoffman, Melissa

Melissa Hoffman is the director of one of the largest schools in New Hampshire, the Melissa Hoffman Dance Center, an 8,000 square foot facility, which she designed and built. Her more than 30 years of teaching experience combined with her business savvy have led her to a very successful career in dance education and presenting…

Hubela, Geo

With over 20 years experience in the Entertainment Industry, GEO Hubela is a Choreographer, Artistic Director, Dancer & Teacher. He also is Co-owner and Director of one of New Jerseys leading Dance Education facilities, ICON DANCE COMPLEX, home of the ICONic Dance Company. GEO has choreographed internationally for stage and screen in France, Germany, the…

Imperio, Liz

Liz Imperio has established herself as a major director and choreographer in the entertainment industry. Some of her credits include the staging and choreography for Jennifer Lopez’s most recent world tour Dance Again; director/choreographer of Gloria Estefan’s last 3 world concert tours; and two world tours for Madonna – the Re-invention Tour and the Confessions…

Leeper, Ray

Ray Leeper’s work spans the spectrum from television, movies, and commercials to Off-Broadway and music videos. He has choreographed for multiple seasons of So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing With The Stars, American Idol, America’s Got Talent, Big Bang Theory, and X-Factor UK. His long career has included working with such artists as Cher,…

Loucadoux, Michelle

Michelle Loucadoux & Kristin Deiss have a shared sixty years in the dance industry. Both have worked extensively as professional dancers and are well-versed and experienced in the realm of dance education. After working together in the education field for seven years, the idea of Danscend was born because of an overwhelming need that Deiss…

Mangiaratti, Teri

Teri Mangiaratti is the owner and artistic director of In Sync Center of the Arts in Quincy, Massachusetts. In Sync teaches over 1,500 students weekly in various dance, toddler, music, theater, and art programs. In Sync opened in 1996 in Weymouth, MA, and is celebrating its 24th year in business. She added another location in Milton,…

Miller, Rhonda

Rhonda Miller (Director/Program Head of BFA Commercial Dance Program) She was a founder and co-owner of L.A.’s premier dance studio, The Edge and was the leader for many years of its convention business, L.A. DanceForce. . Her work has also been seen in commercials and industrials for such Fortune 500 companies as Apple, Chrysler, Toys…

Morgan, Stacey

As the owner of 7 successful businesses and mum of 3 energetic children, Stacey Morgan is one of Australia’s most engaging speakers. Stacey is the CEO of Roar Success and specializes in working with Small Business Owners on building strong company vision & culture, leading effective teams, retention strategies for improving revenue and productive time…

Mosqueda, Erin

Erin Mosqueda specializes in bookkeeping services for dance studios. She has been involved in dance in one form or another for the majority of her life and attributes some of her happiest moments to her dance experience. After earning a bachelor’s degree in accounting, Erin began her career at a CPA firm in New Mexico. Throughout…

Perna, Hedy

Hedy Perna and husband Patrick are celebrating 36 years as owners of the Perna Dance Center in Hazlet, New Jersey. Hedy has created a non-competitive, family owned and operated, community and service business model for her school and continually works to create new and innovative programs and ideas for her students. With her faculty and…

Pickett, Jason

Professional dance educator, choreographer, adjudicator and international artist, Jason Pickett strives to help dancers grow to the next level of their artistic journey. With over a decade of performance, choreography and teaching experience, the Utah native has performed live on shows like Americas Got Talent, collaborated with global brands Hermès, Icon Fitness, Toys-R-Us, Crocs, Bud…

Retter, Becca

Becca Retter is a multi-talented dancer, teacher and choreographer. She is an expert at the Al Gilbert Tap Technique and the nation’s leader in pre-school material for your dance studio. She is known for creating the most usable, age-appropriate music and choreography for dance studios with her product Dance Advantage through MusicWorks Unlimited. Her products…

Retter, Thommie

Thommie Retter loves the entertainment business and you will see it shine through in each of his classes. While living a 3 ½ year run on Broadway playing the role of Mr. Braithwaite in Billy Elliot The Musical, Thommie had the thrill of performing for more than 1.5 million enthusiastic theatergoers. After the curtain closed,…

Simler, Kiana

Kiana Simler is an accomplished dancer, teacher, choreographer, and adjudicator with over 15 years of experience hailing from London, Ontario. Her journey began at Dance Extreme Inc. and Western University, where she trained extensively in various dance styles under the guidance of industry-leading instructors and choreographers. Holding an H.B.A. from Western University, Kiana double majored…

Simpson, Pam

Pam Simpson has been the founder, president, and driving force behind Forte Arts Center, for the past 31 years. In addition to building her business from a small, one-room studio to a large, multi-location organization that offers dance, tumbling, and leadership programs as well as private music lessons, Pam is a leading force in the…

Soutier, Michelle

Michelle Soutier, a native of North Carolina and a graduate of UNC Charlotte, boasts an extensive background in the performing arts, education, and entrepreneurial success. Her journey in the dance industry began when she founded Miller Street Dance Academy in 1994, and nearly three decades later, she continues to lead a dedicated team of 53…

Trench, Andrea

Andrea Trench is dedicated to helping dance teachers create and deliver content that is research-based and developmentally appropriate. Her primary focus is classroom management, conceptual teaching, and foundational movement skill development in early childhood dance education. In addition, Andrea uses her 12 years of experience as a partner in a dance studio to inspire, equip,…

Wanner, Heather

Heather Wanner is an educator at heart. Having spent many years teaching in the Elementary and Middle School classrooms, working with children and nurturing their spirits and well-being has always been a passion of Heather’s. As a former Actor’s Equity Member spending many years auditioning and performing in New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia, her…

Webb, Moses

Moses has been creating and developing mobile applications for ~12 years. After officially launching Dominion and MySunday, LLC, Moses has published more than 100 custom mobile applications on the Apple Store and Google Play Store for small businesses, religious organizations, non-profits, and more. Outside of business and development, Moses is a new father and enjoys…

Yip, Mandy

As the founder and CEO of Acrobatic Arts Inc, Mandy Yip manages the staff and delivery of all training programs, and the Acrobatic Arts syllabus in over 6000 dance studios in USA, Canada, UK, Australia, South Africa and over 30 other countries. She heads the Acrobatic Arts examination program, and trains and certifies adjudicators to…